Mom's Birthday, July 15, 2009

My dearest and sweetest mother on her last birthday.  From left to right is me, Brianna, maybe Scottie, Sally, Mom, Cassidy, Megan, and Aaron.  I remember the grace, warmth, and tenderness that Hanna greeted my mom on her birthday.  Thank you, Hanna.  Thank you, too, to the very keen eye and loving heart of Kimberly Strickler-Larkin for taking this picture; for without it, we wouldn't be able to enjoy for hours one of the last great photos of my mother.  I arrived early on that day.  The morning was beautifully warm.  Tom was at work; he used to work the early morning shift at Target.  Chuck was running errands.  I showed up with my boombox and a Schubert CD sung by Ian Bostridge.  The music I played for Mom, which she told me she enjoyed, was Schubert's Winterreise, which means "Winter Journey," and his "Die Forelle," or "The Trout."  It was a pleasant moment because no one was in the house except for me and Mom.  The music made the house feel more spacious and open.  For that house, and all who lived in it and remembered Mom and Dad's big band favorites, the Schubert German lieder was an invigorating melody.  It made the air light as it fractured the nostalgia and recast the history of that house beautifully.  I asked Mom what she thought of the music and if I should turn it off?  She said, "No.  I like it." 

Charlen Holding Baby John Michael, 1966